A Modular Structure for Immediate and Transitory Interventions to Guarantee Access to Basic Healthcare in Italy

Abstract

The access to basic healthcare for people who are not registered in the national health system is nowadays a very urgent problem, both in Italy and in the rest of the world. Immigration and poverty are only some of the factors that make one of the primary rights of humanity—healthcare—not a right for everyone. The main problems, which have grown exponentially in the last decade, are at operational level, due to the lack of personnel (mostly volunteers) and the lack of spaces. This paper illustrates procedures and techniques for the design of a small emergency structure that can be moved and positioned in urban contexts. The first part consists of a deep analysis of the problem and of the state of the art of existing typologies. The second part is dedicated to the conceptual framework (requirements, conceptual model) and to the definition of the preliminary design for the new approach to basic non-conventional sanitary spaces. Finally, a virtual case study (project application) in Italy is presented.

Innovative and Sustainable Temporary Structures to Guarantee Emergency Basic Healthcare in Italy

“…All the interviewee associations confirm the need to have a social space outside the therapy. That is why the requirements of the model already consider psychological help as a private space in which those people can find support from a professional but also for external spaces 1 .…”

“…It is an easily built and economic system that verifies the economic analyses due to the use of the most common materials according to the situation. Indeed, an economic evaluation of the system was made, reported in previous work [1].…”

“…The literature review regarded an overview of the emergency models and experiences in past and recent studies. In the last twenty years, several strategies and innovations have been proposed to ensure the capacities of healthcare facilities during and after disasters [1].…”